Sea Trout from the shore

Ayrgunn said:

I'm thinking of spinning for sea trout from the shore as a Danish colleague of mine had convinced me to give it a try. I'm just wondering what the legalities are with this in Scotland. If you know of a river that has decent sea trout runs how close to the river mouth are you allowed to fish? Do I need a permit?

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I think that it is fair to say that with regards to this there are 2 opposing views.

One is that sea trout as migratory fish are considered in the same light as salmon and that 'rights' are established in law.

The other is that angling in salt water is basically free from restriction (and that believe it or not means up to the tidal high water mark - which may be miles up river)

Secondly, in law how can the term 'sea' trout be defined? Caught in saltwater? (at what salinity level though) or is it having once 'gone to sea' - but then at what salinity level is it 'sea' etc etc. Or is there a genetic difference?* )) The truth is that there is no practical legal restriction prohibiting you to fish up to the high water mark (other than laws regarding access) and should you be challenged (or prosecuted in fact) there is no way of defining a sea trout for the purposes of law anyway.

Where does that leave you. I suppose the fact is that your rights to fish in all saltwaters are much stronger than many riparian owners would accept. Some will fight their corner and make it as difficult and hostile as possible, some accept that their rights don't in fact extend as far as they had believed.

On the Kyle of Tongue for example you had to pay for a st permit, a few years ago they suspended this due to the realisation that they may have been erroneously charging outside of their rights.

Don't know if that helps, to preserve 'niceities' it might be appropriate to make local enquiries as the law and some riparian owners expectations are at odds. I'm not a lawyer so don't base your defence on this but I would be happy to visit you in the big house if the worst comes to the worst

correction, not KOT but Kyle of Durness

* no

Rosslinden0 is correct, the L.L.A.I.A do sell estuary only permits and availible only from Tickers Tackle in Helensburgh (£65) for the season and covers the Clyde estuary as per map on L.L.A.I.A Website as keirstream kindly indicated, The R Leven Day or weekly permits and full memberships also cover the estuary waters.

Fishing for salmon and as such the terms of the Salmon and Freshwater Fisheries (Consolidation) (Scotland) Act 2003 determines that Salmon also means Sea Trout as it covers all Salmonids, so its the species that it applies to. The offence is under Sec6 of the Act "Fishing for salmon without right or permission
(1)Any person who without legal right, or without written permission from a person having such right, fishes for or takes salmon in any waters, including any part of the sea within 1.5 kilometres of mean low water springs, shall be guilty of an offence,"

So as you can read there is no distance from the specific mouth of a river its marked by the low water spring.

The L.L.A.I.A do actively do bailiff the Clyde estuary and they have had numerous successes at court where people have committed the above offence.

I think on other threads its been mentioned before, it is the written right to fish for those species that is required and of course thats why carrying a valid permit is important as that is formally your written permission. Failure to provide that written permission, is when the difficulties start.

Cheers GTB.